Construction Costs Shell/Turnkey Comparison

- Plastering inside and outside
- Screed basement, ground floor and upper floor
- Heating heat pump
- Central ventilation
- Sanitary
- Electrical without bus system
- Windows including shading
- Painting work
- Floor coverings

Did I forget something?

Yes, you did:
- Stairs 2x = 20k upwards
- Tiler
- Drywall installer, plasterer
- Locksmith/railings/gutters
- Solar technician?
- Doors inside/outside/garage
- etc. etc.

You can forget doing it yourself - then it will also be expensive, because you won’t even notice that something is missing in the offer, then the additional cost will come. I would do the general contractor right away and assume that in your case the separate contracting would not be cheaper.

Hello,

a general statement about how much everything approximately costs is very difficult, as the floor plan/plot of land is decisive for the costs.

I award all trades individually and so far I have been cheaper than through a general contractor (GU). In my opinion, however, you always have to consider the following points:
- You often have to do some work yourself, as there are occasionally problems at interfaces that you did not anticipate. If you have two left hands, that can be quite difficult.
- For each trade you award, you have to gain experience through a lot of research and time investment. Craftsmen do not like customers with zero competence. Professional inquiries are more likely to be processed and only through acquired knowledge can offers often even be compared and negotiated.
- Every craftsman sells his work as the best work. You have to be able to recognize good/bad work. Again, research, talking to other people/companies, and visiting other construction sites.
- When you award the trades individually, you usually do not decide on the cheapest solution because you deal with it. Mostly you take certain extras that would not be included with a GU. I consider that a positive.
- Every GU adds about 15% margin on every trade that is awarded. There is therefore enormous saving potential here.
- Comparing companies also entails enormous saving potential. With many trades, I was able to save several thousand € with the same performance because I compared several companies. I think GUs ultimately do not deal with comparing companies the way you do yourself.
- You can lose track of costs; if you forget trades or something similar, costs can explode very quickly.

Overall, I would say that you can save 20-30% if you award all trades yourself, but the time investment is quite large. I spent 1 year (about 4 hours a day) planning and researching until the groundbreaking.

And your shell construction is already expensive.

I award all trades individually and so far I have been cheaper than through a general contractor. In my opinion, however, the following points must always be considered: - You often have to lend a hand yourself because there are occasionally problems at interfaces that you had not anticipated. If you have two left hands, that can be quite difficult. - For every trade you award, you have to acquire experience through a lot of research and time investment. Craftsmen do not like customers with zero competence. Professional inquiries are more likely to be processed and only through acquired knowledge can offers often be compared and negotiated at all. - Every craftsman sells his work as the best work. You have to be able to recognize good/bad work. Again, research, talking to other people/companies and visiting other construction sites. - If you award the trades individually, you usually do not choose the cheapest solution because you are involved. Most of the time you take certain extras that would not be included with a general contractor. I consider that a positive. - Every general contractor adds about 15% margin on each trade awarded. There is therefore enormous savings potential here. - Comparing companies also involves enormous savings potential. For many trades I was able to save several thousand € with the same performance because I compared several companies. I think general contractors ultimately do not deal with comparing companies the way you do yourself. - You can lose track of costs; if you forget trades or similar, costs can explode very quickly.

For exactly these reasons, there is the scope of services of an architect. Tendering, awarding, coordination, construction supervision, control

Without knowing the house in detail, I would estimate 200k for the shell and a maximum of 200k for the rest. And that is already calculated high.

hm. Basement about 10x10m, plus a large garage and a shell including exposed roof truss for almost 200sqm? Yes, you don’t know the house in detail, but apparently you also didn’t read what the OP is building.

I would estimate 200k for the shell and a maximum of 200k for the rest. And that is already calculated high.

Basement: 50-100k depending on the finishing standard, garage 50k, incidental construction costs 50k. Then there remain 200-250k for a 185sqm house. That’s a lean 1,080-1,350€/sqm. Should currently be roughly below material costs. But sure, it is already calculated high... You sweeten my getting up with a hearty laugh...

For exactly these reasons, there is the scope of services of an architect. Tendering, awarding, coordination, construction supervision, control

If you consider awarding the trades yourself or hiring a general contractor, the primary goal is to save costs. If you use the full range of architectural services, it will probably be even more expensive and you might as well stick with the general contractor.

When considering whether to assign the trades oneself or to hire a general contractor (GU), the primary goal is to save costs. If you make use of the full range of architectural services, it will probably be even more expensive and you might as well stick with the GU.

However, if the goal is missed due to a lack of knowledge, then nothing is gained, and this is seen much more often – the tender is not appropriate, defects are not noticed, interface coordination does not work and makes it more expensive/time-consuming, etc. – unfortunately seen daily. The one (architect) does not exclude the other (building cheaply), by the way.
Architect-designed houses are mostly more expensive than standardized houses because individual wishes are taken into account and can also be changed much more easily during construction ("I have another idea..."). Otherwise, the costs between GU and architect first and foremost do not differ per se.